Familia!

Familia!

 

It feels like the weather is heating back up! This past week wasn't too hot, so it was nice to feel a little break from the heat that was "bruuuutal" as dad would say haha. Monica and Maria didn't come to church yesterday because they said something came up last minute. My companion and I were a little concerned, so we met with Monica a little later in the evening and brought a member who just got back from a mission about 9 months ago. Something seemed a little off, and then Monica said she'd been thinking about it and she doesn't want to get baptized. Just for a little background--We challenged Monica on Thursday to read the Book of Mormon and pray every day untilnext Sunday and promised her that if she did so, she'd receive an answer of either yes or no if the Book of Mormon and everything else is true. We were praying super hard and had planned to fast this week, but that kind of caught us by surprise. Some good news though was that we taught Maria (Monica's mom) on Wednesday night and she came out with the Book of Mormon in her hands saying that it is so much easier to understand than the Bible and that she knows it's the word of God! What a testimony builder! We had been trying to get her to read and pray about it, promising her that she'd find out it was true and then she did! We are working to still get them both up to the Visitor's Center and have a powerful lesson with them up there.

 

I hope you've all been able to get that Book of Mormon reading going. It's interesting to me how each time I read it, different things stick out and I always learn something new. That book is the key! All the kids here started school this past Tuesday, so they're all back into the swing of things. Mom, thanks for the update on your trip to Utah! Sounds like things went really well! Dad, thanks for letting me know about the hike. Sounds like a pretty one but all that smoke is getting in the way of things! I hope those fires calm down here soon. I had an email from Joshua Finch, so it was great to hear from him. I can't believe he's back and that Matthew is an Elder! All great things! Let that family know how much I love and appreciate them.

 

In Elder's Quorum yesterday the teacher talked about how sometimes the fruits of our labors are not seen by our own eyes. He talked about his great-great grandfather was one of very few people to be baptized on the island of Samoa back then and it might have seemed like a failure that only one or two people humbled themselves and joined the church. But then he recounted how many of that one man's children, grandchildren, and great grandchildren had served missions and also helped others come unto Christ and receive the restored gospel. He said his family in total has nearly 2,000 members of the church living. That's huge! He just emphasized that no effort is ever wasted. Even though it may seem that what we are doing makes no difference, even the smallest changes can bring huge miracles. (Alma 37:6) The Lord pays attention to every detail of our lives and will help us to be an instrument in His hands, if we seek to do His will. What a blessing!

 

Well, get excited for a great school year and I'll keep you all in my prayers that all goes well! Thanks for the great emails and prayers! Love you all! Have the best week!

 

Elder Reynolds